International Space Station Experiences Loss of Communications with Ground Control

At approximately 9:45 AM EST (1445 UTC) on Tuesday, February 19, the International Space Station (ISS) experienced a loss of communication with the ground. At that time, flight controllers in Houston were updating the software onboard the ISS’s flight computers when one of the ISS’s data relay systems malfunctioned. The primary computer that controls critical station functions defaulted to a backup computer, but it did not allow the ISS to communicate with NASA’s tracking and data relay satellites.

Mission Control at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas was able to communicate with the crew as the ISS flew over Russian ground stations before 11 AM EST (1500 UTC) and instructed the crew to connect a backup computer to begin the process of restoring communications. Once communication was re-established, Expedition 34 Commander Kevin Ford, KF5GPP, reported that the ISS’s status was fine and that the crew was doing well. Communication systems were restored as of 12:34 PM EST.-- Thanks to NASA for the information